SONGBIRD SYMPHONY
Music to our ears
Uncle Pea raised adorable orphan Birb as one of his own. But Birb’s squat little body makes it quite apparent that he’s not a peacock like Pea, so the bouncy little bird sets out to explore the forest and find out more about his origins, while having a little groove here and there along the way. The gorgeous pixel art is delightfully chunky, bringing all the forest’s wildlife, including Birb, to life in the cutest possible way. Our hero bounces, he jigs, and he squashes as he jumps through the trees in search of answers. We get hands-on with one forest level, and find plenty of secrets hidden out the way as we assist new potential friends. (They give us feathers and musical notes as a reward – just what a growing Birb needs.)
Other animals are also dotted around the forest, and for the most part are just new pals you’ve not yet met. Most of them have their own little musical rhythmic things going on, and as we play it becomes clear that often spotting and interacting with that rhythm that can lead to further progress. We don’t get to meet them all; more winsome, grooving animals, including breakdancing penguins, await on your journey of self-discovery – you’ll want to poke around and discover these little extra tales just to see the creatures in action. It really is that much of a delight to see these creatures dance.
JUNGLE BOOGIE
The extra little melodic cues that you can interact with to uncover musical notes blend in nicely with the background music, so going a little out of your way to help out actually does make you feel like you’re creating a little symphony of the forest. Little Birb has a good ear, as he can lend a hand to the other forest animals to make all sorts of music.
Singalong-type segments, in which you engage in musical battles with other animals, such as a tapping woodpecker, punctuate the platforming action, and you need to succeed in these to progress. Often you have to prove yourself worthy of your rival’s assistance by demonstrating you know how to groove. In the demo we play we’re shown the peacock dance by Uncle Pea himself, and then have to match a wise owl (complete with constantly rotating head) note for note after making our way through the first section of the forest. It’s all very retro, but it’s an adorable beat we can still get on down to.